The Holy Ghost Notes Podcast

180: Africa or Camping (Say the Quiet Part Out Loud + Priorities)

On episode one hundred and eighty of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt calls in from the studio at Rock Lititz as he gears up for a run of touring that includes Australia, the Underoath tour, and a month in Europe, while Tim recaps a chaotic first week back to school with three back-to-school nights and football four nights a week. The guys trade kid stories, then Matt talks about learning to say the quiet part out loud in the studio, owning his anticipation issues on double bass instead of hiding them, and how that honesty is starting to carry over to the stage. He and Tim close on priorities, working through what it looks like to keep home intact before chasing anything else, and why fixing what's broken at home beats trying to escape it.

179: Purpose and Perspective (Burnout)

On episode one hundred and seventy nine of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim find themselves at the cusp of finishing out a fun summer and get back into the grind. They talk about burnout as it relates to drumming and making music, as well as how it relates to life. Matt shares a little about the mental space he was in when they first started the podcast and how it was the most burnt out he's ever been. The guys come to a similar conclusion on how to overcome burnout on both fronts.

178: Laugh Party (Facing Difficulties)

On episode one hundred and seventy eight of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim narrowly avoid missing an episode after countless setbacks and unsuccessful attempts. Matt talks about the recent festival show in Canada where the guys initially attempted to record this episode (and failed due to connection issues) and the eventful journey home. Teeing up the shared drum/faith topic of facing difficulties, Matt talks about how practice is hard, and should be hard. Tim takes things in a different directly and expresses the inevitable, unseen difficulties of showing up to a gig as an opening act without a crew. The guys then talk about how laughing is therapeutic and Tim describes what "Mamba Mentality" means to him.

177: Bishop Tim (Simplify the Space + Caring Before Sharing)

On episode one hundred and seventy seven of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim meet again at sunrise. Matt enjoys a cup of coffee while Tim struggles to string together coherent sentences. After a long stretch of avoiding coffee talk, they get it all out in what some might consider an adorable tangent. Then Matt dives into the drum topic, touching on how the freedom of being able to practice whenever he wants to despite it being in a hot (or cold) garage is more important to him. Next, Tim opens with a quote that he and Matt were chatting about a few weeks earlier, and talks about caring before sharing. Matt backs it up with an instance in his own life where he found that idea of personal investment to be meaningful.

176: Sitting on the Edge (Take Pride in the Work + What's In Front of You)

On episode one hundred and seventy six of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt returns from his clinic tour in Canada and rolls right into recording the episode with Tim (due to release the same day). Inspired by his time spent with eager young drummers; Matt talks about how nothing can rob him of how proud he is of what he brought to each session, because of the work he put in leading up. This spurs the guys into a conversion about having a passion and pride around all things drumming, including the process. Tim shares about his short vacation and how he was able to unplug. The guys talk about being bogged down by all of the responsibilities and expectations, and the difficulties they face when trying to reserve time for relaxation and restoration.

175: We Need An Airtag (Teaching Drums + Check the Mirror)

On episode one hundred and seventy five of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt tells a story about his missing wallet and Tim gears up for the end of the school year. Inspired by a recent lesson student inquiry, Matt and Tim talk about teaching drums and how it can benefit both the student and the teacher. Then Tim reads a short perspective on the common Christian phrase "love the sinner, hate the sin" and gives his take on being quick to judgement.

174: Holy 16th Notes (Season of Surrender + Be Thou My Vision)

On episode one hundred and seventy four of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt talks about the newly released 10th August Burns Red record, Season of Surrender. He shares a little bit about his experience writing and recording drums for the album and his excitement around the release. The guys also talk about playing songs that you know and have enjoyed playing in the past. Next they talk about the song Be Thou My Vision and how impactful the lyrics are. Tim stumbles upon a fascinating breakdown of the song and discovers its 6th century origin leading to some sobering sentiments. Finally, Matt and Tim chat about the beginnings of the podcast and why it means so much to both of them.

173: Back to It! (Summer Drumming + Public or Personal)

On episode one hundred and seventy three of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt adjusts to life back home after returning from tour, and Tim struggles with some back issues. The guys talk about their drumming goals/plans for the summer and Matt shares a few exciting projects in the works. Matt then talks about the juxtaposition of being vocal about your faith versus keeping it personal. This spurs on a conversation about "deconstruction" and the importance of knowing what you believe and why.

172: Wristy Business (Taken For Granted + Keep It Simple)

On episode one hundred and seventy two of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt tunes in, once again, from the back room of the tour bus en route to ABR's next destination. Tim channels his recent wrist pain into a conversation around taking the gift of drumming for granted, and the guys attempt to cut through the noise and talk about the simplicity of the gospel and how it relates to daily life.

171: Lagging (Who You Are Is Most Important + People Pleaser)

On episode one hundred and seventy one of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt records while on a moving tour bus and Tim races the clocks. The guys talk about the importance of character and how who you are and how you treat people matters more as a drummer than the skill of drumming itself. They also discuss people pleasing and the distinction of being "nice" versus being "kind" and the boldness behind saying what needs to be said sometimes.

170: Who Are You? (Push Yourself + Daily Bible)

On episode one hundred and seventy of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt’s gearing up to leave for tour after a long stretch at home and Tim’s adjusting to his new career arrangement. Matt thinks out loud about the tremendous difficulty many musicians face nowadays in pursuit of success. Then the guys discuss how pushing yourself to take on challenges plays a major role in your tenacity and discipline with improving as a drummer. They also talk about how if you don’t know who you are, the world will tell you who you are, and why it’s so important to stay grounded in what the Bible actually says.

169: Close Your Eyes (What You Believe + The Straight, Narrow, & Gray)

On episode one hundred and sixty nine of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim kick it "old-school" after three consecutive guest episodes. Tim shares an excerpt from Atomic Habits by James Clear to tee up their drum topic about how identifying factors that you claim in your life can make or break your ability to improve in certain areas of drumming. Matt argues an alternative, parallel approach that has been working for him. Finally, in attempt to avoid being too controversial, Tim struggles through the discomfort of touching on political subjects to illustrate a concern around the weaponized usage of vague scripture in this day in age. Matt disagrees slightly, but shares a strong point of view.

168: Will Davidson

On episode one hundred sixty eight of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim welcome their friend, Will Davidson. Will talks about what ignited his love for music production that led to his internship at Atrium Audio, studying at Berklee school of music, and a ton of experience producing his own music. The guys immediately get into AI music and how it's effecting the music industry and the future of music. Will also drops some golden nuggets for aspiring musicians and producers making music at home.

167: Ben Pruitt

On episode one hundred and sixty seven of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim are joined by drummer, Ben Pruitt of Sleep Theory. Ben shares the origin story of his band, his pre-show warmup, his sobriety, and the all-around whirlwind that life has been over the past few years. This episode is special and we hope you get as much out of it as we did.

166: Jeremy Boxerman

On episode one hundred and sixty six of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim bring on Jeremy Boxerman; a fellow drummer, OG inner circle member, and long time friend. Jeremy talks about staying positive even throughout difficult circumstances. The guys talk about the power of music, and Matt and Jeremy talk a little bit about friendship, their time spent together over the long weekend, practicing drums, and even hitting the gym.

165: Kicking Off The Year in Style (Where Do You Want To Be? + Finding Peace)

On episode one hundred and sixty five of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim catch up about each other’s major life changes that have transpired since the last episode. Then the guys talk about where they aspire to be as drummers, the blueprint and the goal. The guys wrap it up with the topic of finding peace.

164: The Odds Are Stacked Against Us (Feeling Rusty + Self-Improvements)

163: A Very Adam Gray Christmas

On episode one hundred and sixty three of the Holy Ghost Notes podcast, Matt and Tim are joined by old pal and familiar guest, Adam Gray. Adam bears all; sharing everything from the story behind his stick tricks, his thoughts on the new unreleased August Burns Red album, prepping for filling in for Matt on tour, overcoming expectations of “living up to his own name”, dealing with grief, as well as writing a book in memory of his late wife, Tegan. We sincerely hope this brings you joy, peace, and a whole lotta laughs. Merry Christmas from Holy Ghost Notes.

162: Ahhh John! (Making Music in 2025)

On episode one hundred and sixty two of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim meet again. Matt talks about prepping for Christmas Burns Red and the busyness surrounding the season and Tim remembers he never gave Matt his birthday card. The guys quickly jump into their topic, "Making Music in 2025" and discuss the major advancements they've seen in music tech over the past year, and how to approach this new wave of capabilities. Opportunity or cheating?

161: Fancy Cheese (Dos and Don'ts + Perception vs. Reality)

On episode one hundred and sixty one of Holy Ghost Notes, Matt and Tim casually discuss their love of cheese and Tim's "cultured" way about him. The guys shift gears and walk through their list of "Dos and Don'ts" as drummers - to both summarize and simplify many of the key points they've discussed in-depth over the past 160 episodes. Then, inspired by Tony Robbins, Tim does an exercise with Matt to tee up the topic of Perception vs. Reality, which takes a rather deep turn.